Blood

Lily’s cage was a tomb of straw and blood, the bear pit’s horrors seared into her mind. Sarah’s broken body, the clients’ leering masks, the bear’s savage roars—they haunted her, blending with the dogs’ claws and the bull’s bellows from nights before. Her skin was a map of welts and bruises, the collar a constant choke on her throat. Mia’s whispers, fierce and stubborn, were the only light in this hell. *We’ll fight,* she’d said, her voice a spark in the dark. But the barn’s shadows grew heavier, and the distant howl of wolves promised worse. Lily’s hope flickered, fragile as a dying flame.